EXCLUSIVE Ex-Blues star mayoral hope offers free coffee to lure workers back to CBD Return to CBD and get ‘free coffee’
Carlton champion Anthony Koutoufides will shout workers a Monday morning coffee to lure them back into the office, if elected to Melbourne’s top job.
Koutoufides has also promised $5000 to businesses which move into the CBD. The Herald Sun can reveal that Koutoufides, who is running for lord mayor in the October council election, will on Thursday unveil the first official policy of his campaign in a bid to “bring life back” to the city.
The AFL legend said he would trial four initiatives in his first six months at Town Hall to “get the city moving again before it is too late”, including $5000 business grants.
The four-part policy is believed to be the first of the mayoral race designed to attract workers back to the city, with Melbourne’s love affair with coffee at its centre.
“Most Melburnians love coffee and our cafes are renowned around the world for it, so for those that make the effort to come into the CBD on a Monday, we’ll shout you a coffee,” Koutoufides said.
The Herald Sun understands the incentive would be capped at one coffee per worker on a Monday morning and run for an initial trial period of one month.
While the finer details are yet to be thrashed out, Koutoufides and his team were exploring options that could see workers scanning a QR code to secure their coffee voucher.
“Let’s put smiles back on people’s faces again,” he added.
“A free coffee can make a big difference.”
Under the policy, a one-off grant of up to $5000 would also be handed to up to 1000 businesses that sign a new lease in Melbourne’s CBD in 2025, which currently has the highest office vacancy rate in the nation, according to the latest office market report.
“All you need to do is walk around the city, Southbank and Docklands and the number of ‘For Lease’ signs is growing by the day,” Koutoufides said.
He added there was no specific type of business they were looking to target with the grants, which are intended to help businesses cover the costs of their rent and escalating bills.
His team said this part of the policy would cost Town Hall up to $5m.
Koutoufides said he would also work with the state government to offer “subsidised” travel across the public transport network for a trial period, starting with Fridays.
In March, the City of Melbourne began calling on the state government to cut the cost of myki fares for office workers on Mondays and Fridays, with former lord mayor Sally Capp saying at the time that the state government was “open” to having the conversation.
Koutoufides added that his final initiative would ensure continued support for major events.
“Weekends are just as important, and we know that major events and special activations in our city are big drivers of activity,” he said.
“Last financial year almost $96 million in economic value was delivered to the city through events and (we) want to build on this, putting extra resources into this space.”
Earlier this month, Koutoufides unveiled controversial and flamboyant former Wyndham councillor Intaj Khan as his running mate.
Former federal Liberal MP Gladys Liu and commercial property developer Zaim Ramani will also run on his independent ticket in a bid to become councillors.
Koutoufides, who played 278 games for the Blues from 1992 to 2007, said he believed in his team, when asked what he would say to those who doubt he can take on the city’s top job.
“In order to create the premiership team, you have your superstars, your stars and those players need to play for the team,” he said.
“And I feel like we’ve built that sort of team as well. And I think if you run anything with passion and love, you can really get through it all.”
Mayoral candidate Anthony Koutoufides and running mate Intaj Khan.
